COST03-BP05 - Configure billing and cost management tools
Implementation guidance
Configure the AWS billing and cost management tools so that the cost and usage data captured in your detailed information sources is visible, actionable, and proactively monitored. With the right tools configured, teams can analyze spending, set budgets, and detect anomalies without building bespoke tooling.
Configure the core tools
AWS Cost Explorer: Turn on Cost Explorer to provide interactive cost analysis and visualization with pre-built and custom reports. Use it to understand spending patterns and trends across the organization.
AWS Budgets: Create budgets with automated alerts and budget actions so cost or usage crossing a threshold proactively notifies owners (and can trigger automated responses).
AWS Cost Anomaly Detection: Enable anomaly detection to automatically surface unusual spend using machine learning, giving early warning of cost issues before they accumulate.
Make the tools effective
Scope to the organization: Configure the tools at the management account level (with AWS Organizations consolidated billing) so coverage spans all member accounts from a single place.
Tie alerts to owners: Route budget and anomaly alerts to the teams that own the spend, using the cost attribution categories and organization metrics defined in the other COST03 best practices.
Review and tune: Regularly review thresholds and reports to keep alerts meaningful and reduce noise.
AWS Services to Consider
AWS Cost Explorer
Interactive cost analysis and visualization with pre-built and custom reports.
AWS Budgets
Custom budgets with automated alerts and budget actions for proactive cost control.
AWS Cost Anomaly Detection
Machine-learning detection of unusual spend for early warning of cost issues.